Montreal Canadiens right wing George Parros (15) fights with Anaheim Ducks right wing Tim Jackman (18) during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Wednesday, March 5, 2014, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu)

The NHL’s trade deadline came and went Wednesday, but Ducks general manager Bob Murray couldn’t pull off a second significant deal to bolster the team’s roster for the stretch run and beyond. Murray pursued Vancouver center Ryan Kesler all morning, but came up empty.

In the end, the Canucks held onto Kesler, frustrating Murray and Pittsburgh Penguins counterpart Ray Shero, who also was in the chase. Hours later, Murray met with reporters and seemed content to have acquired defenseman Stephane Robidas from the Dallas Stars on Tuesday.

“They’ve proven they don’t need any help,” Murray said of the Ducks before they lost 4-3 in a shootout to the Montreal Canadiens at the Honda Center. “They’ve proven they can play. There are a lot of good, young players who are going to get a chance to continue growing. ...

“I’m comfortable. I felt really comfortable after (Tuesday’s trade for Robidas). ... This group has managed to do things, so we’ve left it in their hands. They’ve done pretty well so far. Again, I have total faith in that group in there.”

The Ducks then went out and tested that faith with a clunker of a first period against the Canadiens. The Ducks rallied for a 3-3 tie after regulation play plus a five-minute overtime thanks to second-period goals from Tim Jackman, Francois Beauchemin and Daniel Winnik.

Montreal won the shootout 3-2 on Andrei Markov’s goal after Kyle Palmieri’s apparent strike was overturned by a lengthy video review in Toronto. Palmieri’s shot beat Canadiens goaltender Dustin Tokarski and struck the right post. The puck then danced along the goal line before hitting the left post. It never crossed the goal line entirely, however.

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“The puck hits the ice at a different angle and it might roll in,” Palmieri said.

The game was not won or lost in the shootout, according to Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau.

“I think the first 10 minutes everybody was still thinking about every trade that went on today,” Boudreau said after the Ducks gained their league-leading 92nd point of the season. “They weren’t preparing the proper way. We had to battle in the second and third (periods) just to stay in it.”

The Ducks played without right wing Teemu Selanne, who was sidelined by an illness, and center Mathieu Perreault, who sat out a second consecutive game because of an upper-body injury suffered during the Ducks’ victory Friday over the St. Louis Blues.

Montreal’s George Parros, a member of the Ducks’ 2006-07 Stanley Cup championship team, received a standing ovation from the fans when his tenure with the team was highlighted in a scoreboard video presentation during a television timeout in the first period.

“I live out here in the summer and it’s always nice to come back to the warm weather,” Parros said. “I had this game marked on the calendar. It was definitely a highly-anticipated game. (Memories) are fresh. I spent most of my career here. It’s always good to come back and see familiar faces.”